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a Sermon on the gospel reading

The Gift of God's Word
2 Timothy 3:14 - 4:5

Have you ever been frustrated by one of
those "put it together yourself" projects when you found the
directions really difficult to follow? The mother of all frustrating
moments like this came for me some time ago when I opened a box which
contained the pieces of my new video tape storage cabinet. I laid out the
twenty or so pieces that made up the "do it yourself" project
and noticed that something crucial was missing.

Directions for putting the thing together
were nowhere to be found!

Not being the most patient person in the
world, I began trying to assemble the cabinet without the directions.

Big mistake! Before
long, the project was a disaster and it went to the basement in pieces
where it remained until the directions came in the mail from the
manufacturer.

***

Today's epistle reading is
about having directions for putting something together. In this instance
the "something" is our lives. The fact that directions are
needed to put our lives together in a meaningful way is reflected in
things all of have heard people say. We may have even said something
similar ourselves.

"I'm falling
apart."

"I'm going to
pieces"

"I'm trying
desperately to hold it together."

"I'm losing
it."

"I'm broken
up."

All of us will have one time
or another in our living when one or more of these expressions may come
close to describing what we are experiencing. At those times when life delivers its
worst and our foundations are shaken, we search for answers and direction.

And this only makes sense.
If
indeed there is a God who created us and who loves us, it would seem
rather incredible that such a God would not give us some kind of direction
as to how life is supposed to work. The fact that people experience even a desire for direction points to a spiritual reality.

In our reading, Timothy is
urged to continue using the directions that have given him a solid
foundation - direction for living. The text tells us that since the time
Timothy was a
young lad, he has had access to divine directions for living.

"...from childhood
you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus."

As a kind of aside, it is important to stop and look at
the meaning of the word "salvation." For some people, the word
salvation conjures up images of Elmer Gantry, crooked televangelists, and
turn of the century tent revivalism. Which is too bad, because the word is
so much richer than these distortions.

There is one meaning of the word salvation
that points to eternal life. Jesus promises eternal life to those who
trust in him and commit their lives to following him as Lord and Savior.
In other words, if a person has salvation, they will go to heaven when the
time comes.

And that's enough for some folks. As long
as I go to heaven when I die - that's just fine. Until then, "heaven
can wait," - as the Warren Beatty film of 1978 said.

But there is much more to the meaning of
salvation in the New Testament. to be sure, there is the sense of hope
for the future, but salvation is not simply a guaranteed ticket to heaven
with our life on this earth some kind of waiting room. Salvation is a
present reality with incredibly rich dimensions of meaning we would do
well to
understand.

***

To risk a definition: Salvation in the broadest
sense if to live
a life in relationship with the One who created us and -- to experience life
as God intended it to be - for us.

That is to say that God made you
to be you and me to be me. Your relationship with God may not look exactly
like my relationship to God -- and that is as it should be. No child-parent relationship is like any
other child-parent relationship. You may have nine or ten brothers and
sisters, but your relationship with your parents is unique and not quite
like the relationship each of your siblings has with your parents. So
also, salvation is not a "cookie cutter" thing where all
Christians look alike and act alike and experience their relationship with
Christ just like every other Christian.

There are however, some common things we
share in the family of God just as there are some things we share in our
earthly families. It is the gifts of God we share that constitute the
meaning of salvation.

1. There is the gift of
eternal life Jesus spoke of in John 10:27-28: "My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish."

2. Contrary to what many people think
Christianity does not mean we have to wear some kind of hair shirt! One
of the marks of authentic Christianity is that God gives us joy. Jesus
told his followers that he taught them all the things he did, "...so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete."[John 15:11]
Joy is a hallmark of the family of God and where that joy is missing
there is, as C. S. Lewis put it, "A leak in your Christianity
somewhere!"

This makes absolutely good sense, because
of the promise of Christ for eternal life. His promise that we will
never perish signals the end of any truly life defeating problem. So we
have the joy of God as a hallmark of salvation. The book of the prophet
Nehemiah said it this way, "...the joy of the LORD is your strength." [Nehemiah 8:10]

3. Another key quality of the family of
God is mutual love. This love is not an emotion, but rather a commitment
to the instruction of Christ. "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."
[John 15:12] Being
a part of the family of faith - (or the Body of Christ - the Church) -
means that we are committed to love each other the way Christ loves us.
When someone visits our congregation or comes into contact with one of
us, they are entitled to expect to experience the love of Christ.

4. There
is another quality of life Christ gives to those who trust him that is a
part of the meaning of salvation. When Jesus met with his disciples in
the Upper Room on the evening of his arrest, he gave them a source of
hope that would never be defeated.

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid."
[John 14:27]

The deepest sense of the New Testament word
for salvation means to live our lives in relationship with God and to
experience the gifts of joy, love, and peace - and to know the gift of
eternal life Christ gives to those who follow him. These words to Timothy
point the way to a gift of God that makes it possible for us to gain these
gifts of joy, love and peace. Listen once again:

"...from childhood
you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus."

In other words, Timothy had
gotten in touch and stayed in touch with the directions. The
sacred writings, or the scriptures were the gift of God that pointed
Timothy to the good pathway for his living -- a pathway that would keep
him in touch with God's best for his life.

Isn't that a great thought? To
have directions for living that will keep us in touch with God's best for
our living. The scriptures we just discussed talked about the joy, love
and peace that God wants for us.

Amazingly, the gift of God
that gave Timothy the directions he needed for living are available to
us.

"All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work."
[3:16-17]

Of course, the scripture Timothy knew was
the scripture we call the Old Testament. the New Testament was not yet
formed in the way we know it. Nevertheless, our scriptures which include
the New Testament has been received by the church from her earliest days
as God's Word for God's people of every age.

In other words, the directions are
still the directions and it is in learning from the biblical witness and
growing in its precepts that we are able to know and experience the gifts
of joy, love and peace God wants for us.

***

The directions for my video
tape storage cabinet finally came in the mail. Now it all made sense. Step
"A" had to come before step "B" and then
"C," "D" and the rest followed quite naturally. I had
attempted something like step "J" before step "B" and
totally forgot step "A" !

The directions that come to in
the Gift of God's Word can give us the
directions we need to make sense out of the lives we have been given.

How amazing it would be if the
creator of the video tape storage unit I bought would tell me there were
no directions as to how to put the thing together.
More amazing still would be a God who created human beings without also
giving directions on how to put our lives together.

Take one simple example. When
Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment of all was - he said, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your
strength."[Mark 12:30]

This is step "A"!

When the One who created us
comes above all else, we are certain to discover the very best God had to
give us.

Take time to know and love the
gift of God's Word. This is the one gift out of all possible gifts that
can point us to the pathway that leads to the fullness of life we were
created to live.

There's a sermon here on, "A Long Hard
Night!" But then, Jacob's whole life was long and hard from
the time he was born. He was, in a sense, born to strive. His struggle
with the angel follows his struggles with his father, his brother and his
father-in-law.

Some people seem to learn more easily - by the book - in
the classroom. Others (like me) learn in the school of hard knocks. Jacob
is one of the "School of hard knocks" people.

There is a kind of redemption of Jacob's theft of his
brother Esau's blessing when Jacob wrestles with the angel of the Lord. In
Genesis 27, Jacob steals Esau's blessing in fulfillment of his extortion
of Esau's birthright in Genesis 25. In order to gain the blessing of the
angel, Jacob has to wrestle all night and he is wounded in the process.
The physical wound to the hip points to a deeper wounding in his life. As
one who struggled all of his life, worked for years for his father-in-law
after being tricked, he is both the one who wounds and the one who is
wounded.

Yet, Jacob is the anchor name in the tri-patriarchal name
of God as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

The important lesson in this passage is the fact that God
uses imperfect human beings to accomplish the purposes of the kingdom of
God. That is good news for you and me.

If you weave a sermon from the gospel and epistle texts
along with Genesis, the theme of "Persistence Pays" comes to
mind. Jesus' parable about persistence in prayer along with the
persistence of Jacob in wrestling a blessing from the Angel of the Lord
combines with Timothy's persistence in the faith he has known from his
youth - contains important lessons for our own continuing in the faith.

Almost no one escapes the temptation to give up when
things get really rough. In this parable, Jesus is not giving general
directions on how we should pray. he did that in the "Lord's
Prayer." Instead, this is an encouragement to persist in prayer even
when it is tempting to give up. It is not as though we will get God to
give us the answers to our prayers by pestering - rather, the goodness of
God insures that the divine will - however delayed - is not defeated.
Meanwhile, we persist in prayer. And Jesus asks a question we need to
ponder. "Will we hang in?"

Actually, Jesus does not need the information - he knows
our thoughts. The question is rhetorical meant for us to do some internal
examination. "If it were up to me... will there still be people
persisting in their faith no matter how tough things get - when God brings
about the end of all things?" That is, "When the Son of
Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

[Notes
from last cycle]

¹ The parable Jesus tells should
be interpreted in the context of the eschatalogical theme of chapter
17. Verse 8b makes it clear that this is not so much an
instruction about prayer as it is about a specific attitude of prayer in
light of the seeming delay in the coming of God's absolute justice.
An alternate sermon idea would be to do something on the theme of
"How Long O Lord?" See: Rev. 6:10, Psalm 6:3, 13:1,
82:2, & especially 2 Peter 3:4. Your conclusion could be the
Psalm of the day 121.

v. 2 The "judge" in this
passage is not to be compared to God, but contrasted with God. An
appointee of Herod or Rome, these local magistrates were notoriously
corrupt. Unless a plaintiff had influence or money, they had no hope of
prevailing in court. Williams Barclay points out that there was a play
on words with their title. Officially these judges were called
"Dayyaneh Gezeroth" = "judges of punishments".
The people called them "Dayyaneh Gezeloth" = "robber
judges".

v. 3 The point of the story is that
under normal circumstances there would be no way this poor woman could
receive justice. Yet, here persistence finally wins the day.
The story is uniquely Lukan and plays to Luke's constant theme of God's
care for the poor and dispossessed.

v.5 "So that she may not wear me
out" Interesting term used here. "Wear me
out" is "hupopiazo" literally "strike under the
eye" or "give a black eye". Most commentators
assume a figurative meaning... like "wear me out".
Some, like Barclay suggest the possibility of an actual fear of physical
harm. In any case the judge finally acts -- but out of something
other than righteous motives.

v.7 "chosen ones" = "eklekton"
Used throughout scripture, but especially significant in denoting those
who at the end of history are a part of the victorious side. ( cf. Matt.
24:31, Mark 13:27, Rev. 17:14)

v.8 Luke's gospel carries a
characteristic theme of perseverance -- or "patient
endurance". True believers are those who trust God and endure
to the end. Many see the parable of the unjust judge as primarily
eschatalogical. See: Luke 8:15, 21:19, -- also Ps. 27:13,
37:7, Rom. 15:4, Heb. 10:36, James 5:7-11 (Especially good if you
consider an alternate sermon with a focus on "patient endurance)

This is the third in a series based on the
lectionary passages from II Timothy during October. The four parts
to this series are: I. The Certainty, II. The Promise,
III. The Basis, IV. The Prize[See 10/4/98
for additional notes on the series]

II Timothy 3:14 - 4:5 ~ Foundations for the
Church - III. The Basis

As the young Timothy is being nurtured for his ministry, he
is now instructed on the basis for his ministry. Through good times and bad times,
whether there are receptive listeners or people who chase after the latest new idea,
Timothy is to remain firmly planted on the basis of his ministry -- namely, "the
sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ
Jesus."

1. The Basis of Instruction (3:14-15)* The content of the curriculum from the youngest age is the scriptures.* This will not change -- i.e. "continue in what you have learned"* The purpose of the curriculum is to lead persons to faith in Christ* Faith in Christ brings the gift of salvation

2. The Inspiration and Function of Scripture(3:16-17)* "All scripture is inspired by God" The words
"inspired by God" is the familiar "God
breathed" = Gk.
"theopneustos".* This verse provides a great place to discuss authority in ministry and in the
Christian life* The function of scripture is to provide: teaching, reproof (show where the wrong
is),
correction (to help get back on track again), and training (from "paideia" - as
one would teach a child) in the right /
righteousness

3.The Urgency of Timothy's Work* The language is clearly suggesting an urgency to Timothy's ministry. He
is to: Proclaim the message -- with Persistence
and Patience!
* The solid teaching of the minister - based on the scripture - will offer some
protection for the "time that is coming"
when people will listen to teachers who will tell them what
they want to hear.

Worship Helps

A Responsive Call To
Worship (Based on Psalm 121)

Leader: We gather today to
open our hearts to a question,People: Where do we look for help in troubled times?Leader: Our help come from the One who made heaven
and earth,People: The Lord our Creator is also the One who protects
us.Leader: The Lord will keep give us strength to
resist evil,People: He will watch over us today and for ever and ever.
Blessed is the name of the Lord. Amen!

A Prayer of
Dedication

We dedicate these gifts to you O
Lord our God, for you are worthy of all glory, praise and honor. You have
given to your people beyond measure, and saved us with an everlasting
salvation. May the ends of the earth come to know that you alone are
God, and that your grace and mercy are from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen.

A Prayer of
Confession

Be gracious to us today our
Lord, for we are in need of your mercy. We are often quick to doubt
and slow to pray. We are tempted to let go of faith when we need to hang
on. We are discouraged by wrong when we need to be encouraged by your
Spirit. O God, our loving Lord, give us strength to trust in you all the
days of our lives. Amen.